In July
1994, only three short months after the cease-fire between Azerbaijan
and Armenia, President Aliyev and his administration turned their
attentions to the future of Azerbaijan-its youth. The first Ministry
established by Presidential decree was the Ministry of Youth
and Sports, which has been led by Abulfaz Garayev since its inception.
Garayev estimates that at least 30% of Azerbaijani refugees are
youth-people under the age of 25. So the activities of this Ministry
have a significant impact upon the lives of many Azerbaijanis.

Left: Irada Ashumova-2nd Place Riflery Winner
at World Cup (1996).

Under the Soviet regime, the
empire had only one centralized organization dedicated to young
people-the Komsomol-a governmental entity whose activities naturally
conformed to communist ideology. Likewise, there was only one
organization for the administration of sports-the Committee of
Sports. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and its communist
ideology, these organizations ceased to exist, leaving behind
a huge void.

These days in Azerbaijan, there
are more than 80 different youth organizations, completely independent
of the government, which focus on many aspects of the youth experience.
Seeking support for their efforts, as well as guidance, many
of these organizations have voluntarily become associated with
the new Ministry of Youth and Sports. And together, a decision
was made to try to establish an overall ideology, or vision,
of what they wanted to achieve for the Azerbaijani youth. To
that end, 14 committees have been formed which are currently
analyzing how young people should relate to such topics as religion,
business, crime, drugs, education, agriculture, health, sports,
ideology, politics, entertainment, etc.

As its name implies, Azerbaijan's
Ministry of Youth and Sports is also active in the athletic arena.
One of its goals is to protect the rights of all people to be
engaged in sports and physical culture. Through the implementation
of laws, the Ministry establishes guidelines for: (1) the championships
which take place inside Azerbaijan, (2) the determination of
who qualifies to participate in international tournaments, and
(3) the activities of the companies and organizations who are
arranging and funding sporting competitions.

Since independence, Azerbaijanis
have taken pride in receiving international recognition for their
athletic achievements. They no longer have to perform under the
anonymous umbrella of "Soviet," which was often assumed
to be "Russian." In 1995, they brought home 52 medals,
including 23 gold. They excelled most in wrestling, boxing, judo,
and karate. This past summer in Atlanta, however, was the first
time that Azerbaijan had participated in the Olympic games as
an independent state, under its own flag. When the Azerbaijani
delegation of athletes arrived in Atlanta, few spectators seemed
to know this country. But after one of the Azerbaijani wrestlers
won the silver medal, suddenly people were saying, "Oh,
you're from Azerbaijan? You have good wrestlers and good boxers."

Of course,
producing world-class athletes these days is quite a challenge
for Azerbaijan due to the limitations imposed by its struggling
economy. There is simply not enough money to support everyone
who wants to participate in international competitions, nor to
provide for the development of their athletic skills to their
ultimate potential. However, during this period of transition,
the Ministry of Youth and Sports is doing what it can to combine
the best of the Soviet system for breeding high-class athletes
with what it has learned through exposure to the West.

Tahir Zahidov. Greco-Roman
Style Wrestling World Champion (1995).

As the Minister of Youth and
Sports, Garayev senses that the prevailing attitude among the
Azerbaijani youth of today is optimism. According to Garayev,
"Fortunately, youth are flexible and recover quickly from
difficulties. Our country must look to the future with optimism.
Our President does, and we must do everything in our power to
make sure that the youth continue to face the future with hope,
too."